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Innovation

When you hear the word, what do you think of? If your answer is Steve Jobs, Elon Musk or Google, you’re not alone. In an ever-changing world, innovation is the key to staying ahead of the game. By sitting back and sticking with what may have worked a couple years ago, you’ll quickly find yourself left behind by the people who knew better than to become complacent. Complacency is one trait you won’t find an innovator. They are always looking for ways to improve the way we do things, whether it’s a new product, a new process, or just a better approach altogether.

At Leadercast, we celebrate The Brave Ones who, with unrelenting boldness, dared to challenge the status quo. These people are who have paved the way for life as we know it. Innovation isn’t something that happens by accident. The greatest innovators in history were intentional about the change they wanted to see. So what exactly does it mean to be an “innovator?” Three things we’ve noticed that separate the innovators from the rest of the world: vision, bravery and accountability. The greatest innovators of our time were unapologetic about their vision because they could see something the rest of us couldn’t. They were usually their own toughest critics and were constantly evaluating how they could do better. One of the most nerve-wracking things you can possibly do is put your life’s passion out there to be subject to the criticism of the world. Instead of worrying about the “what if’s,” they had the courage to put it all on the line. And we are thankful they did.

Additionally, it’s important to know that an innovator isn’t someone who never fails; it’s someone who has probably failed time and time again, but refuses to accept defeat. Take Steve Jobs for example, he was actually fired from Apple in 1985. He admitted in his famous 2005 Stanford speech that it was a very public failure, but without that event, he probably wouldn’t have gone on to be as successful as he was. If there is one thing you can always count on, it’s that things will change. If you’re not on the front end of that change, you must at least be ready to embrace it. Read more about innovation in our free report or hear it first hand from innovators around the world on Leadercast NOW.